SIR: Election Commission Big Order! Central Govt Employees to Monitor Voter List Revision

SIR: The Election Commission has taken a special step to maintain transparency in the electoral process and enforce stricter monitoring during the voter list revision. Until now, State Government employees predominantly worked at the grassroots level as BLOs in the state’s voter list revision or SIR process. However, a significant change is being introduced to this system. Central Government employees are now being directly involved in this process and will be assigned the responsibility of ‘Micro Observers’.

Scope of Work for Micro Observers

According to the recently published guidelines by the Commission, approximately 2500 to 3000 Central Government employees will be appointed to this special post across the state. It is believed that this decision by the Commission will further increase transparency. The main duties of the Micro Observers are discussed below:

• Presence at Hearings: These Micro Observers must be physically present during the hearing phase regarding claims and objections after the publication of the draft voter list.
• Document Verification: They will thoroughly scrutinize all documents submitted during the hearing process.
• Assistance to Officers: Their primary role will be to assist the EROs (Electoral Registration Officers) and Special Roll Observers and to ensure that the process follows the rules.

Why This New Step?

According to sources from the Election Commission, complaints often arise from various political parties or the general public during the voter list revision. Allegations regarding the deletion of valid names or the inclusion of invalid names frequently surface. The decision to deploy Central Government employees has been taken to ensure that this hearing phase is completed impartially and smoothly. The Commission’s goal is to ensure that no questions of bias arise during the hearing process.

The Chief Electoral Officer of the state has already given necessary instructions to the relevant district officers regarding this matter via video conference. This important hearing process is scheduled to begin seven days after the notice is issued following the publication of the draft list.